More Than Words
by Cashmeritan
Summary: *Royai Oneshot* After the final battle, Roy searches for a way to destroy all the excuses that they had made, in the form of a bouquet of red roses and a trip to Riza's front door. *Chapter 108 spoilers! :o*


A/N: This is my first Royai one-shot in FOREVER. I've really gotten into these two again, and I'm glad that I did it in time to see off the end of this awesome series. Of course, Brotherhood isn't over YET (not quite, at least), but...yeah. There are spoilers for the last chapter in here, so beware! You have been warned!

Also, to celebrate my 6th year of being on , i wanna give people a chance to submit requests for one shots :D keep me busy, people!

R&R, pleaseee. :D

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More Than Words

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But honestly, what could accurately represent how he felt? Roy considered this, conflicted as he stood in front of the display of bouquets outside the flower shop. He had promised her a night, just one where they could celebrate personally the triumphs that they had experienced, and to make the night all the more special he wanted to thank her, but just a simple 'thank you' could never suffice for all she had done for him. He shifted his weight back and forth from foot to foot, feeling pathetically indecisive on what he should get her as a gift of sorts.

He must have stood there long enough, because a shriveled up elderly woman, whom he then knew to be the owner of the shop, stepped outside to greet him.

"Are you looking for flowers for a lady?" The woman asked, suggesting the most common explanation for a young man's trip to her shop.

Roy didn't know whether to nod or shake his head, he simply raised his hand to rub the back of his neck. "Uhm, sorta," he gave as his reply.

The woman smiled. "And what kind of lady would you be buying flowers for, sir?" she inquired.

He stuttered over the beginnings of a pathetic explanation, before she cut in.

"Is she someone who's special to you?" She asked, knowingly.

Roy nodded. That was a good enough description, it left out all the complicated facts.

"A girlfriend?"

She must have seen the flustered look on Roy's face, for she chuckled softly. "Roses make any woman happy, they're always a safe bet."

He frowned, looking down at his attire - a maroon dress shirt with black slacks, and tugged on the hem of the shirt. "Aren't roses a little...intimate?"

But the more he thought about it, there was no way to describe whatever relationship he had with Riza without using the term 'intimate'. He gave a stiff nod, and dug out his wallet, pulling out a bill. "I'll take some," he said, earning another smile from the flower shop owner.

By the time he had paid for the roses (he had decided to go with red, as he knew they matched the wallpaper of her dining room, at least that's the excuse he told himself) he continued down the street, passing by various shops and taking his time to reach her house. He knew her house - a skinny townhouse sandwiched between a row of other similar looking ones - rested about two blocks ahead, which gave him time to come up with a likely story he could use.

He practiced the lines in his head, imagining that when she opened the door and saw him dressed nicely with a bouquet, she'd probably demand an explanation.

'Oh, Lieutenant...Oh wait, you're a Captain now. Yeah, these are for you. To celebrate the promotion.'

No, too stiff.

'Riza, I found these lying on the street, and they just beckoned for me to pick them up. You're a woman who looks like she could appreciate finely cut flowers, would you like them?'

What the _hell_ was that one about? Roy raised a fist and lightly punched himself in the forehead, sighing. He knew that her house was growing closer and closer with each step, and he was at a loss for finding something intelligent and daresay meaningful to say to her. He looked down at the bouquet in his other hand, the bright crimson petals catching in the light of the impending sunset, and smiled distantly.

How could he possibly tell her how he truly felt, without ruining what was their carefully constructed relationship? He was now the Brigadier General, and she was his faithful Captain, who watched his back and swore to give her life for his. From the outside looking in, of course it looked a little questionable - he was an attractive young man, and she was the closest thing to gorgeous the military had probably ever seen. To make matters even more questionable, they were absolutely inseparable, and prided themselves on the fact that they had known each other for so long, and yet hadn't sealed such a bond with something like marriage or dating.

That isn't to say they hadn't tried in the past. Roy paused mid-step as an image floated into his mind. It was Riza, about 4 years younger, flustered and naked on his bed with her tattoo staring up at him in eerie detail. Oh, they did try... He pressed his back against the wall of a house that lay on the end of a row, right before the last block he would have to travel through.

He couldn't quite place what the reason was, whatever it was that made them stop trying. He thought it was the idea of being professional, or the idea that by maybe putting every fiber of themselves into ensuring he made Fuhrer, they could then reward themselves with genuine efforts once the job was done.

Whatever the reason was, it didn't matter now. Times had changed, things that could be unseen had been seen (or rendered visible, in his case) and he wanted to do away with whatever excuses they still kept around.

Roy pushed himself off from against the wall, and resumed walking. He now had some sort of idea of what he would say, and he had a renewed sense of haste in his steps.

When he did reach her door, he raised his fist and knocked. He could hear Black Hayate immediately start a series of barks, before finally the door opened, and there she stood.

She was wearing a silky cream blouse, tucked into a charcoal pencil skirt and her long blond hair fell just short of the crest of her breasts. She was even wearing a little make up - mascara, he thought. She looked beautiful, but she was staring at him and the object in his hand, her focus switching back and forth but with the same amount of confusion and shock displayed on her face.

"Riza, I..." He tried to begin, but ended up trailing off. All of the words that he had prepared simply vanished into thin air, and without thinking he climbed her front steps and wrapped an arm around her waist, pushing her forward so that their lips met.

Somehow, thankfully, it conveyed everything he had wanted.

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END

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A/N: I'm so sad that the manga's over. D: I was hoping they'd release an epilogue chapter, but...yeah. I'm hoping Brotherhood provides a little more fluff, seeing as they spent all those chapters building up a sweet relationship between Roy and Riza, only to hand the 'officially canon!' title to Ed and Winry. :/ Not that I didn't see it coming, nor is it that I don't like them...but yeah.

So, here's to celebrate just about 5 years of me 'shipping this couple. :D


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